It is well known that accidental oil spills generate considerable damage to the environment. Inventors have in the past disclosed various arrangements for collecting such oil spills. U.S. Pat. No. 4.554.072 shows an arrangement including a barge downstream of an oil spill connected with floating stationary skimmers that concentrate the oil at the barge from where it can be removed from the water. U.S. Pat. No. 4.976.855 shows an oil-collecting vessel pulling a set of floating screw-like rotating booms which concentrate the oil to a small area from where the oil can be removed.
The known oil spill collecting devices have the disadvantage that the oil is not concentrated in a small space of sufficient thickness so that so that the oil can be effectively pumped out without being intermixed with seawater.